The Power of Team Leadership

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Copyright Susan McKinnon 2006. This work is
the intellectual property of the author.
The Power of Team
Permission is granted for this material to be
Leadership
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Thursday, October 12th
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Susan McKinnon
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References of used materials are noted at the
end of the presentation.
About GPC
Before Teams
• 2-year college
• No CIO
• Atlanta area
• Dysfunctional
• 5 campuses, 1 center
• People and units operated in a vacuum
• 20,000+ students
• Problematic implementations
• 3rd largest institution in GA
• “Good witch” vs “Bad witch”
• Centralized IT
• Dissatisfied customers
(with exceptions)
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AV Example
The Beginning of Change
• Classroom has numerous requests for
• Realization that change was needed
portable AV
• We listened
• Media specialist decides on equipment
– To each other
• Seeks funding
– To “outside” constituents
• Orders
• Made concentrated effort
• Instal s
• Attrition
• Everything works….. Right?
• Sought out more information
Facts
The Importance of Teams
• Technology Infusion
• “There are no problems we cannot solve
– Internal OIT areas
together, and very few that we can solve
by ourselves.”
– External customers
– Lyndon Johnson
• Customers have knowledge
• The whole is greater than the sum of its
• The need for input
parts
– From internal OIT folks
… or
– From non-OIT folks
f (x )
n
> ?
• No one has all the answers
xi
i =1
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Resistance to Teams
The OIT Team
• Ego
• AVP/CIO
• Three directors
• Insecurity
– Educational Technologies
– Enterprise Application Support
• Na?vete’
– Technology Infrastructure
• Nine assistant directors
• Temperament
• Coordinator
• Team members
Communication Methods
Building Teams
• CIO + directors
• What task do you want to accomplish?
• Directors + assistant directors
• What areas are affected?
• Assistant directors + coordinator
• Who is a key person from that area?
• Assistant directors/coordinator + individual
– Skill?
– Authority?
teams
– Team player?
• Entire leadership team
• What should be the size of the team?
• OIT listserv
– Too small – not enough buy-in
– Too big – can’t get anything accomplished
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Team Types
Great Team Members
• Nature of the Need • Character of the Team
• Participate fully
– New
– Creative
• Motivate themselves
– Controversial
– United and motivated
• Are team players
– Changing
– Fast and flexible
• Know their teammates
– Long-term Project
– Determined
– Everest-sized
– Experienced
• Build up their own self-confidence
• Resolve conflict quickly
• Keep tabs on progress
• Celebrate successes
Keys to Success
Barriers to Success
• Goal setting
• Inadequate planning
– Collaborate
• Leaders without leadership skills
– Be realistic
• Poor attitudes
• Get support from higher-ups
• Communications breakdowns
• Establish ground rules
• Personal conflicts
• Communicate, communicate, and
• Lack of rewards and recognition
communicate
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Weak Links
What to Watch For
• The law of addition
• Lack of focus in the group
– 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 = 50
• Too much agreement
– 10 + 10 + 10 + 10 + 5 = 45
• Uneven participation
– 10% difference
• Lack of follow-through
• The law of multiplication
• Power and authority issues
– 10 x 10 x 10 x 10 x 10 = 100,000
• Conflict and disagreement
– 10 x 10 x 10 x 10 x 5 = 50,000
– 50% difference!
Being a Team Leader
About Personalities
• Respect
Analyticals
Amiables
• Understand personalities
• Be clear and decisive
CHARLIE BROWN
LINUS
• Match members to tasks
• Give directions, not orders
Drivers
Expressives
• Promote participation
• Delegate and empower
LUCY
SNOOPY
• Get feedback
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Find Your Niche
Growing the Team
• Be secure
• Develop team members
• Know yourself
– Training
• Trust your leader
– Coaching
• See the big picture
– Supporting
• Rely on your experience
– Providing direction or responsibility
• “Moving people outside their gifts leads to
• Add missing links
frustration, but motivating people out of
• Remove ineffective members
their comfort zones leads to fulfillment.”
– John C. Maxwell
Team Styles and
AV Example
Development Levels
• OIT involvement
– Media specialists
– Desktop technicians
– Instructional technologists
– Networking specialists
• Outside involvement
– Academic deans
– Department chairs
– Instructors
– Plant personnel
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Lessons Learned
More Lessons Learned
• We succeed and fail as a team
• When we mess up, we apologize
• We must share information
• We forgive
• We must be honest
• We appreciate our differences, realizing
• We must not make un-warranted
that they make us a stronger team
assumptions
• We congratulate and reward others
• We follow through on what we say
• We celebrate our successes
• We get each others’ backs
• We genuinely care about each other
Resources
• The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Team Building, by
Arthur R. Pell, Ph.D
• The 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork, by John
Questions?
C. Maxwell
• Effective Teams, a presentation from the
Educause Management Institute by William H.
Pritchard
smckinno@gpc.edu
• URL for presentation:
– http://www.gpc.edu/~smckinno/presentations.htm
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